Zenith Interiors: EDO collection inspired by the streets of Tokyo

EDO meet & EDO Work Lounge

Marc Schamburg and Michael Alvisse founded their furniture company in 1997, but it wasn’t until they spent an entire weekend locked inside a fibreglass factory completing a large order that Schamburg + Alvisse turned towards sustainability.

“Have you ever walked past a nail salon?” asks Michael. “The smell! Those are some serious chemicals.

“Well, being inside that warehouse was like that to the power of three. Without aircon,” he adds.

The experience started Marc and Michael thinking about the health and wellbeing of people who worked in those conditions day in, day out.

We discontinued that product and began asking more questions.

Like many construction professionals, the pair had assumed the products they were using were safe and well regulated. After all, they were being used in schools and could be purchased over the counter at hardware stores.

EDO collection: angular lounges that rise like quirky buildings, arm rests that feature discreet charging docs and meeting nooks that resemble intimate tea houses.

It turned out some of these readily available products contained chemicals that could be harmful with long exposure.

“Our trust was challenged,” Michael explains. “We discontinued that product and began asking more questions.”

Tokyo’s streets lead to sustainability

Since then, Schamburg + Alvisse’s focus has been on creating timeless collections that thoughtfully incorporate sustainability at every turn. From the design to the manufacturing and the potential for endless reuse.

The duo’s latest design is no exception.

Marc Schamburg and Michael Alvisse's EDO collection is available through Zenith Interiors

EDO is a modular commercial furniture series available exclusively through Zenith Interiors.

Inspired by Tokyo’s laneways, EDO pays homage to the city’s “sophisticated blend of technology and tradition” with angular lounges that rise like quirky buildings, arm rests that feature discreet charging docks and meeting nooks that resemble intimate tea houses.

It’s not to be in one season and out the next.

But don’t be fooled, the collection is no mere fashion statement.

“We want people to feel good in it,” Michael explains, “but it’s not to be in one season and out the next. It’s designed to be Zen, almost invisible, quietly doing its job.”

The understated nature of the collection means you can imagine seeing in an office 10 years ago or 10 years into the future. And to make it so, each piece is built for easy disassembly, movement and repair.

Its materials are also thoughtfully selected to minimise impact on both the environment and people’s health: from the FSC sustainable timbers to the GECA certified foams.

View the collection and other sustainable, commercial furniture on Zenith Interiors.

Together on world’s stage

Signing with Zenith Interiors has allowed Marc and Michael to take their ethical products to a global market.

“Kind of like a Trojan horse of sustainability,” says Michael, the partnership has enabled them to demonstrate that ethical and environmentally friendly products can be popular and profitable.

Zenith Interiors: EDO collection inspired by the streets of Tokyo